Ficlet: And One to Grow On

[rivlee]

Author: rivlee

Title: And One to Grow On

Rating: PG

Characters: Spina and the Philly boys. Gen.

Summary: Spina’s first birthday away from home. Part of the Modern!AU.

Disclaimer: This is all fiction based off the characters as portrayed in the HBO mini-series. No disrespect is meant.

A/N: Unbeated.



October 4-6 2006

Spending a birthday without your friends and family was part of moving on and growing up. Ralph Spina knew that, logically, but it didn’t make it suck any less. He’d been in St. Boniface on his own for a month now and while Doc Roe was cool, and Shelton was annoyingly entertaining, Ralph missed his boys.

“You okay, new kid?” Remy Whitman asked.

Remy was one the LPNs who helped run the St. Boniface Free Clinic so Doc Roe didn’t work himself into an early grave. His twin brother, Ray, was an EMT who worked with Shelton. They were both cool guys, but not exactly the type Ralph wanted to go out with for a beer on his birthday.

“Missing home,” Ralph admitted as he checked through the inventory.

“Sucks,” Remy said. He sat down on one of the piles of paper bedding, letting his long legs dangle out before him. “It’s your birthday tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah,” Ralph said, “but I’ve never made a big deal out of it.”

“Now why do I think that’s some bullshit?” Remy asked.

Ralph laughed. “Probably ‘cause I’m a shitty liar.”

Remy let out a shocked snort and leaned back against the wall. “You’re good people, Spina,” he said.

“Thanks,” Ralph said.

“You can go and head on home when you’re done,” Remy said. “We got tonight’s shift covered.”

Ralph shrugged. “I might as well stay, I’ve got nothing better to do.”

Remy tsked. “Take advantage of the offer, it ain’t going to happen again.”

Ralph thought for a moment. Doc Roe had warned him about the insane hours and the general lack of sleep and time off. He could mope with the best of them but he wasn’t that fucking stupid.

“Guess I’ll be heading home for an early night,” Ralph said.

“Yeah you will,” Remy ordered.

********

“You got a box,” Shelton drawled from the couch. He was sprawled out, bare feet dangling over the edge and the tv remote resting on his chest.

“I though the post office didn’t deliver boxes out this far,” Ralph said.

“They don’t,” Shelton said, “but I had nothing better to do today.”

“You picked up my mail without my permission?” Ralph asked.

Shelton waved a hand. “I do it for Gene-Baptiste all the time.”

“Isn’t that mail fraud? Don’t you need an i.d. or something?”

“You honestly think Miss Emmy isn’t going to trust me with mail addressed to my home?”

Ralph pinched his brow. “I don’t understand you,” he muttered.

“You’ll learn,” Shelton said. He turned back to the tv, clearly done with the conversation.

Times like these, Ralph missed home so much it actually fucking hurt. He walked over to the kitchen table where the box sat, a Philly postmark, with his dad’s return address. He ran a finger over his dad’s writing, smiling as he traced over the wide letters drawn by permanent marker. He carefully opened the box, sorting through the care package. It was full of birthday cards signed by the neighbors, boxes of TastyKake Krimpets and Kreamies, and a few wrapped presents. Zita and Kari must’ve done the wrapping jobs, with all their elementary school kid skills. It looked like a bottle of glitter and a roll of tape had exploded inside.

Ralph grabbed his box and walked up the stairs to his room. He kicked the door open with his hip and and dropped the box on his bed before turning the light on. The black-out curtains did a damn good job when he had to work the night shift, but it made it hell to walk through his room during the day. He sat on the bed and pulled his hat off, running a hand over his head. He needed to get it shaved soon, but was admittedly intimidated by the local barber shop.

Everybody knew everyone’s business here. Not that Spina wasn’t used to living in such tight-knit places, he just wasn’t used to being the outsider.

Doc Roe told him to make the room his own, but it still felt like Gene’s guest room. It didn’t smell right, the wall paper was wrong, the whole feeling of the place off. He didn’t feel settled enough to make his own mark, something in the back of his mind telling him not to get too comfortable. Ralph knew he could make it here on his own, but he didn’t know if he really wanted to, it’d been an exhausting run of months. It really sucked being the only new kid in the whole damn town. And if one more person tried to set him up with their sister-friend-cousin-niece-granddaughter he’d break the Hippocratic Oath.

Christ, he could use a strong drink right now.

He decided to call his dad and thank him instead. He didn’t need the lecture about being rude and ungrateful on top of celebrating his birthday on his own.

********

Fitzwilliam’s wasn’t bad for an Irish bar run by Greeks and stuck in the middle of bayou country. It was the only bar around, so it more than served its purpose.

“I heard it’s your birthday,” Jordan, the bartender, said as she plopped down a piece of baklava in front of him.

“Shelton tell you that?” he asked.

“Remy,” Jordan said with a wide smile.

Jordan was a cute girl, tough as nails but far too reminiscent of a long line of Ralph’s ex-girlfriends. He finally admitted he needed to change up his type, especially since it was well known Jordan’s older brother had no problem avenging his baby sister’s honor. Not that she needed the help. Ralph had seen her fight back more than one grabby patron.

Ralph jumped as a strong hand gripped his shoulder.

“Excuse me, sweetheart, is this emo asshole bringing you down,” a familiar voice said.

Ralph turned around. “Guarnere, what the fuck?”

Bill had a smug crooked smile on his face. “Couldn’t have you ring in a birthday on your lonesome. It violates the code.”

“And because Babe wouldn’t shut up about it,” Fran said. She took the seat next to Ralph and smiled at Jordan. “I’ll have a Heineken and the asshole who just called you sweetheart will have a cranberry juice.”

“Fran-” Bill started.

“You’re driving,” she said. She patted Ralph on the head. “Don’t start shitting yourself, Raphael, you know we couldn’t let you suffer alone. Babe and Julian will be here soon. They had to catch a later flight.”

“How the hell did you do this?” Ralph asked.

“The internet’s an amazing thing,” Bill said. He took his cranberry juice with a nod and a smile. “And we didn’t tell Julian until this morning.”

“We had to threaten Babe with duct tape and hair dye to keep his mouth shut,” Fran said.

“Does Doc know he’s coming?” Ralph asked.

“Babe decided to go for the double surprise,” Bill said. “We’re staying at a hotel just in case. There are things I don’t want to know.”

“They’re not that serious,” Ralph said.

Fran snorted while Bill just shook his head. Ralph couldn’t stop smiling. “You fuckers,” he said.

Fran pinched his side. “We love you too, Raphael.”

“Thank you,” he said.

Fran kissed his cheek and slapped the back of his head. “You’d do it for us,” she said. “Hell, you have done it.”

“We’re family,” Bill said, “and since your dad can’t come down here, you got us.”

“And you know they couldn’t forget your birthday licks,” Fran said.

Ralph’s arm twitched in response. “I figured that was the real reason.”

“I’ve been practicing on slabs of meat and concrete blocks to really make them sting this year,” Bill said.

“Oh, hell no, it’s Julian’s year to hand them out,” Ralph said. Unlike Bill who was trained by the friggin’ military to fight, Julian only had a street scrapper’s sense of timing and endurance.

“I won the rights in a bet,” Bill said. He cracked his knuckles and made a big show of making a fist.

“Do you know how friggin’ hard it is to fly with a box of cannolis these days?” Babe asked, storming through the door like a regular.

In a lot of ways he was. All the regular patrons raised their glasses at his appearance.

“They searched Babe’s bag like, five times,” Julian chimed in.

“Happy Birthday, Spina,” Babe said, dropping down a baker’s box in front of him. He slapped Ralph on the back of the head. “And that’s for doubting us.”

Babe pressed a kiss to Fran’s cheek before heading back to the kitchen and greeting everyone as he passed. That was the power of Babe Heffron, he had a way of making himself at home wherever he went.

“Happy Birthday, Ralph,” Julian said, dropping a bag of presents on the bar. “We miss you, asshole, but we figured it was time to bring the party to you.”

Ralph was trying really hard not to cry. He’d never really been homesick before, never had the chance to, and this was just what he needed when he needed it. He wasn’t worried about losing it in front of his boys and Fran, they’d seen him at his worst and beyond. It was the fact that he still had to make a reputation in this town and bawling like a baby in the bar wasn’t the way to go about that.

Babe came out of the kitchen with a cake, Jordan following with candles and a lighter. Not quite the birthday Ralph was expecting, but there was no way in hell he was complaining.

********

He woke up on the floor of Bill and Fran’s hotel room. The aforementioned couple had moved to Babe and Julian’s room around three in the morning, leaving the kids to their own devices. Julian was currently sleeping with his head resting in the closet. Babe was awake, curled up near the window and texting on his cell phone.

“Something about this seems familiar,” Ralph said.

“Déjà vu all over again,” Babe said.

Ralph put his head back down and laughed. His spine was killing him and he could feel the sore spots on his arms from all the birthday licks and pinches. “I love you bastards but you’re bad for my health,” he said.

“Hazards of the job,” Babe said. He held up his phone. “I’ve already called you out of work.”

“Doc know you here?”

“He probably does now. I called Eva,” Babe said.

“You want to give me a ride home so you can see him?” Ralph asked.

“I ain’t here for him, Spina,” Babe said, “and this sure as hell isn’t about me.”

“I’ll consider it a hell of a birthday gift to see Shelton try to roll his eyes out of his head while he watches you two.” Ralph sat up. “I need a shower. And to brush my teeth. And probably ten aspirins.”

“Is that your way of voluntelling me?”

“If you need to ask, it’s been way too long.”

Ralph hopped up and patted his pockets to make sure he had everything.

“I’ll get your presents and cake,” Babe said, “if you get the door.”

“That’s really nice of you, Babe,” Ralph said as he opened the door.

He walked into a face full of shaving cream. He couldn’t see anything but he heard Bill’s distinct cackle and Babe wheezing behind him.

“You should know better by now,” Fran said as she started to wipe his face off.

“I hate you all,” Ralph said. He tried hard not to smile and breathe in the Barbasol.

“Fuck, I missed it,” Julian said.

Ralph sighed. He really wouldn’t have his birthday any other way. He loved his godforsaken friends.